Joy in Christ: Learn Contentment
Contrary to popular belief, the grass is not greener on the other side. The lie that Satan has always sought to convince us of is that if we only had some- thing that we do not presently have, we would be completely content. This began all the way back in the garden. Genesis 3:4-5 says, […]
Problem Solvers vs. Fault Finders
Let me state some realities for you. The following list is not a specific indictment of this congregation, but I do believe these statements could be made about any local congregation, anywhere in the world: This is just a sampling. You can, no doubt, think of other things to expand this list. My point, however, […]
Three Mistakes in Influencing People
What helps in any endeavor is learning from our mistakes. The Lord’s work consists of influencing people to obedience in God (Matthew 5:13-16; Colossians 1:28). Influence comes down to a matter of communication, whether verbal or non-verbal. Sometimes we are guilty of neglecting the common sense principles of influence that people in the world use […]
The Names of Christians: “Servant”
In our final word of the series, Paul uses an illustration in 2 Timothy 2:24-26 which is his most used expression. Paul taught in Romans 6:16-17 that we must be someone’s servant. You cannot simply refuse to choose! The “form of doctrine” in Romans 6:17 is the teaching of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. We […]
Can We Change Sin? #6
What if We Excuse Sin? With the first sin, came the first excuse. If you look closely at the account in Genesis, you will notice that Adam blamed Eve and God, while Eve blamed the serpent (Genesis 3:12-13). We try everything to explain away our sin. Every sin man can think of has been blamed […]
Joy in Christ: Maintain a Clean Conscience
It is a certainty that a guilty conscience will cause a person to be unhappy. There are a couple of instances of guilty consciences in the Bible that are worth considering in this short space. The brothers of Joseph had a guilty conscience over the years as a result of their sin against their brother […]
5 Reasons I Didn’t Rebel as a Teenager
Hello. My name is Rebecca Gregoire, and I was the perfect teenager. Obviously I’m saying that as a joke, but by most standards, I truly was pretty perfect. I never drank, never smoked, never partied, never dated, never even swore (honestly, I didn’t swear until I was 18). I may have been moody, but I […]
Joy in Christ: Worship God
The regular worship of God is a source of joy and happiness for God’s saints. Psalm 95:1-2 says, “O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms.” […]
The Names of Christians: “Vessel”
In 2 Timothy 2:20-21, Paul uses the term “vessel.” Having drawn the contrast between true and false teachers at some length (vss. 14-19), Paul now points to a second contrast between noble and ignoble vessels. Both will be found in the church. “But in a great house,” where a wealthy man lives, “there are not […]
Can We Change Sin? #5
What if We Consider the One Who Is Committing the Sin? Along with the other ways we have considered society’s changing of sin, for some reason unknown to me, we also have a terrible habit of excusing sin based on who is committing it. Think about all the people out there who are willing to […]